


Beautiful

by lethally_deadly



Series: Winterhawk Week 2015 [1]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: First Meetings, Kinda, Love at First Sight, M/M, Winterhawk Week 2015
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-07
Updated: 2015-10-07
Packaged: 2018-04-25 08:52:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,050
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4954087
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lethally_deadly/pseuds/lethally_deadly
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>While watching his ex assassin boyfriend spar, Clint remembers the time he first met Barnes. It was love at first sight. Kinda.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Beautiful

**Author's Note:**

> Hello my dears :3  
> This is my first fanficiton EVER so please be kind :) I would love some feedback and let me know if you do, indeed, enjoy this little thing for Winterhawk Week. Yes; I know Winterhawk Week was a while ago, but I just got a computer recently and figured I should finally upload these little fics.
> 
> Beta'd by my beautiful friends [Hrafnsvaengr](http://hrafnsvaengr.tumblr.com/) and [spacedorkstark.](http://spacedorkstark.tumblr.com/) Be sure to check out their tumblr, or --if you haven't already-- read Samovar by hrafnsvaengr (you will not regret it)!

 

He was beautiful. 

The intense focus on his face, his mouth set in an angry line, his body language dominant and terrifying, his long hair tied back into a ponytail so it didn't fall into his piercing blue eyes. 

He was beautiful. 

Clint had a hard time taking his eyes off of him. 

The sound of skin on metal brought Clint back to the present. Bucky had once again thrown a left hook at Steve, forcing the star spangled man to sacrifice a limb to block the powerful punch. Bucky was getting more and more comfortable in his skin, and he had been actively using his metal arm in training. The fear of actually harming a teammate with said arm was still in the back of his head, but he had become less self-conscious of it. Steve stumbled back with a huff and threw out a leg in hopes of catching the ex assassin off guard. 

It didn't work. 

Bucky gracefully sidestepped the leg, and using his momentum, threw an arm around Steve's middle to take him down. Steve, expecting this, went to the ground and rolled out and away from Bucky. He jumped to his feet and once again kicked out. This time he was lucky and caught his best friend in the chin. With a grunt of pain, the Winter Soldier flipped onto his feet and rushed Steve again. 

Clint watched with fascination as the two best friends traded punches. They were evenly matched in strength, but Bucky had Steve beat when it came to agility. Clint had seen the Winter Soldier's agility first hand, and he didn't expect anything less from James Buchanan Barnes. 

Bucky went for a punch, which Steve caught. But Bucky was waiting for that. He used the momentum of the punch to twist Steve around resting with his arm crossed over Steve's neck. He then grabbed Steve's other wrist, yanked the arm behind Steve and up his back, and kicked him in the back of the knees, sending the captain down breathing hard. His arm crossed over Steve's throat, and his other arm holding Steve's hostage behind the captain's own back signalled the end of the fight, and brought on a wave of emotion for Clint. 

He was so beautiful. 

Clint felt himself drift back down memory lane; back when he first met the Winter Soldier. 

~  *  ~

He was running across the rooftops in the slums of Mexico, following a black SUV. His target; the brutal drug lord Francisco Macias, better known as El Diablo Hierba, The Herb Devil, how subtle. Francisco had got onto SHIELD's radar after he smuggled a new narcotic across the US border. This narc however, was in fact an old recipe from HYDRA's own scientist Arnim Zola in the attempt to administer an untraceable poison to the citizens of the United States. This poison was supposed to turn regular people into super soldiers. However, this didn't work and the effects on the host resulted in fatalities. It was Clint's job to get to the facility where this drug was being made, and put an end to it and the head distributor; El Diablo Hierba. After blowing the warehouse sky high with one of his explosive arrows- Fuck Yeah- Clint had to find Francisco. But upon realizing Clint was out to put an end to him, he bolted, and took with him the children he had slaving away in the factory. After hearing about the child slaves, Clint became even more determined to find this bag of scum. 

So there he was; following an SUV on foot. After the fuck up of Washington, with Natasha and Cap, this was exactly the kind of job Clint needed. He got to take out a loyal HYDRA bastard who was enough of a pussy to have taken children hostage. This was the kind of job Clint took pleasure in doing. A man that would kidnap children deserved a damn arrow through the throat. His only concern was he didn't know what arrow to use. Would an exploding one be overkill? Probably not. He didn't really want to scare the kids, but he half expected them to give him a standing ovation after taking this guy out. 

Finally, the SUV stopped at some old looking barn. Clint had fallen behind a block or two, but he could still make out the scene perfectly. He stopped running and surveyed the area. Francisco was there with six of his goons, each holding a frightened child. Clint's blood boiled at the sight. As he watched the group go in, he got the distinct feeling he was being watched. Out of the corner of his eye, Clint saw something. He whipped his head around quick enough to see a glint of silver on an opposing rooftop. He made the mistake of blinking, and the glint was gone. 

With the hairs on the back of his neck still standing on end, Clint climbed down the broken fire escape on the building he was perched upon and set out for the barn The Herb Devil was occupying. 

He snuck into the barn through the window. Walking along the rafters gave him a complete 360 view of every corner in the open barn. It was almost pathetic how easy this would be. That is, until the greasy fuck of a man Francisco put a gun to his child hostage's head. He looked around the barn and started yelling. In Spanish. Fuck, Clint's Spanish was a little rusty, but he kinda got the gist. If he wanted the children to live he was to reveal himself. Of course he was somewhat reluctant to do so, but when he heard the click of the safety going off, he jumped off the rafter and into the pile of hay that was conveniently underneath him. The goons already had their guns trained on him before Clint had even righted himself. 

"Put down your pathetic weapon or I will kill this little one", Francisco smirked so he did know English. Clint didn't want to, but he couldn't have the blood of the children on his hands; he couldn't have the blood of anyone on his hands, there was already too much. He dropped his bow and swung off his quiver with a huff. He stood in the dimly lit barn with his hands up in a placating gesture. His brain was already starting to work, but he couldn't see how this was going to have a fairy tale ending.

He didn't have much more time to think of a plan, however, because the same prickling feeling of being watched was back. Clint seemed to be the only one to be affected though, as Francisco was speaking to his hired muscle in Spanish. He didn't seem to have a care in the world, that is, until a shot rang out. Francisco fell to the ground with a bullet in his leg.

Clint didn't know what was happening, but he could work with it. He rushed two of the goons and forced them to release their hostages. Clint swung out a fist and caught one of the guys in the face. He ducked a punch from goon number two and kicked him in the ribs. He realized he was in over his head when a third goon came over and grabbed him. He struggled but by this time goon number one was up, and he was pissed. 

He threw a punch to Clint's nose, eyes, and mouth and kicked him between the legs before Clint was finally able to wriggle his way out of goon number three's grasp with a grunt. Clint flipped away from the mountain of a man and grabbed his bow. He fired two arrows at once, instantly killing two of the three who attacked him. Goon number two was about to meet the same fate as his friends when Clint felt a hand on his shoulder. He swung around and nocked an arrow, then aimed it at the strange man who touched him. 

He was beautiful. 

A man, no older than thirty, was standing there with a rifle swung across his shoulder. He wore all black with a mask covering half his face. But what really stood out for Clint was the metal arm. This stranger had a metal left arm. 

"You. You're the glint!" Clint exclaimed. He wasn't sure because of the mask, but Clint thought the man had frowned. He didn't answer but instead pushed Clint behind him and squared off against goon number two, who had gotten up sometime during Clint's discovery. As Clint watched the man fight he was amazed. The fluid grace with which the assassin moved surprised him. With an arm made of metal you would think it would be difficult to move. Apparently, you would be wrong. This masked man had no problem beating the shit out of goon number two. And with a glance around the barn, it seemed he hadn't had a problem beating the shit out of everyone else either. There were bodies all over the place. Clint was impressed. The fluidity, the ferocity. Who was this beautifully deadly man? Clint decided right then and there that he wanted to get to know him. He wanted to talk-- to flirt-- with the assassin after this whole fuck up of a mission was done. He wondered what this man's name was, and how it would sound when Clint yelled it out in the throes of passion. Clint snapped himself out of his daydreams and forced himself to remember the task at hand. With one glance back at the masked man, who had already downed his opponent, Clint headed over to Francisco, hoping he wasn't dead. He wanted to do the honors himself. 

As he got closer, Clint realized that he wasn't in fact dead. Good. Clint was already starting to feel smug. He looked over his shoulder and was surprised to see the assassin exactly two steps behind him.  Ok. That was weird. I didn't even hear him come up behind me,  Clint thought. Suppressing a shudder, Clint met the assassins eyes. God, his eyes were gorgeous. They were smouldering, intensely blue. There was so much passion in this man. Clint was instantly awed by him. This stranger made him feel more alive than he had since New York and they hadn't even spoken one word to each other.  But now wasn't the time to think about that. Clit turned back to the bleeding drug lord. 

"Tough shit, huh Herb Devil. You thought you had won didn't you? How fucking cute," Clint sneered. "I've been looking for you for a while, asshole. You've been hiding in your disgusting little rat hole haven't you-- why are you laughing you smug little shit?" 

The drug lord was looking back at the hot, masked, mystery man with glee. He looked back at Clint and began laughing even harder. 

"You don't know, do you, gringo?," Francisco asked with pure glee. He turned to the masked man. "Go on, comrade, show him who you really are." 

As Clint turned around to look at the assassin, he really looked at him. The man looked  so  familiar but Clint couldn't place him. The man looked right back at Clint and finally met his eyes. After an awkward six seconds of staring, Clint recognized the man all at once. This was the man that Clint had watched so much footage of. This was the man that had attacked Natasha and Steve in DC. His blood ran cold, and as the Winter Soldier slowly pulled off his mask, Clint felt extremely less smug than he had before. 

Knowing that Francisco was working for HYDRA, and the Winter Soldier was HYDRA's lap dog, Clint became significantly more nervous. He couldn't picture any scenario in which he escaped this alive. If the Winter Soldier wanted you dead, you died. 

Suddenly, the Winter Soldier made a move. Clint flinched, but the Soldier lunged right by him to grab Francisco by the throat. He pulled the drug lord to his feet with a growl. 

"What are you doing?!" Francisco yelped. "You have been helping with production for months! What has gotten into you, Soldado?" 

Francisco was becoming more and more agitated while Clint was becoming more and more confused. With a snarl, the Winter Soldier threw Francisco to the ground. 

"I wasn't working with you out of desire. You are slime. You are scum. You are the dirt beneath my feet." The Soldier stalked closer to Francisco with every word. "I was forced to help you, it wasn't a choice. It was my job, nothing else. But now, you're out of luck, because I have a choice today", the Soldier smiled. It was fucking terrifying. "Today, I choose to shut you down." 

The Soldier looked up at Clint and grinned a bloodthirsty grin. Clint found him even more attractive if that were even possible. After hearing his speech, Clint had pieced together exactly what had gone on in the past. HYDRA had clearly forced the Soldier to protect Francisco and help him distribute the narcotics to the US. But after Washington, the Soldier finally got his memories back and he decided to come back and shut down the threats that he had previously been affiliated with. It was actually quite endearing. It became clear to Clint exactly what kind of man the Winter Soldier was, and Clint wanted to get to know him. The fact that he was hot was just an added bonus. 

Clint took the cue and walked up to Francisco and pulled out a knife. "Normally I would want to use my bow to do this, but I think this is a better arrangement," Clinton informed the drug lord with a smile. He held up the blade and looked deep into Francisco's eyes. "And fuck you for using child slaves you asshole. Fuck you twice for taking them hostage."

And with that, Clint drew the blade across Francisco's throat. He died within seconds, a little too soon for Clint's taste but he'd take it. He leaned over and wiped the blade clean on the dead man's shirt, then looked up and was surprised to find the barn empty. The assassin was nowhere to be seen. It was unsettling how quiet he was. 

Clint was about to turn in for the day and rendezvous with extraction when he heard the crying. He almost kicked himself for forgetting the children, but he ran over to them anyway. He pulled up short after witnessing something he felt verified to call "The Most Heart Warming Fucking Thing Clint Barton Has Ever Seen". Behind a stack of hay were the six Mexican children with the Winter Soldier crouched down in front of them, a tender smile upon his face. That smile both broke and mended Clint's heart all at the same time. If Clint hadn't been sweet on the guy already, he definitely was now. He listened to the Soldier talk to the children softly, telling them everything was okay and how they were very brave. He then watched as he took two of their hands and told them to hold onto each other, and with a small smile in Clint's direction, led the children out of the the barn. Clint walked over to his discarded bow and quiver, grabbed them as slung them both over his shoulder before going to grab the Soldier's mask. He then exited the barn, following the assassin and his toddling followers. 

After an awkwardly quiet ride back to the area in which the children lived (they took El Diablo Hierba's SUV fuck you very much), the children went home, leaving Clint in the presence of the very attractive (and hopefully single and a little bi-curious) Winter Soldier. 

"So that was pretty cool. Thanks for, ya know, not killing me. That was great of you," Clint mumbled with a tired half smile. 

"I was watching you at the factory. You blew it up," the Winter Soldier states. 

"Uh-huh. That was me," Clint responds somewhat proudly. 

"I'm glad I didn't shoot you before you got the chance to do so," the Soldier says as he turns his back and begins to walk away. 

Clint can't believe what he just heard. How did he not notice the metal armed man up on that rooftop? No matter how hard he wanted to feel offended, or unsettled by the fact that he could very well have died, Clint couldn't help the smile that slowly curved his mouth. 

"Don't you want to know the name of the guy you almost killed?" Clint projected so the retreating figure could hear him. 

With an amused smirk the Winter Soldier turned around. "I don't need you to tell me your name, Hawkeye." 

Clint a short laugh of surprise broke free from Clint's throat, and he tossed the Winter Soldier his mask. The Soldier caught it with ease, then turned around and began to walk again. "Ungrateful bastard," Clint yelled, "Don't I get to know the name of the tall, dark and handsome man who saved my sorry ass?"

That stopped the Soldier. He turned back around with a shit eating grin and stalked over to Clint. He situated himself right into Clint's face and leaned in close to whisper in his ear. 

"James"

~  *  ~

"Clint?"

Clint snapped back to reality when a metal hand touched his shoulder. With a smile, he turned around to look at Bucky. His forehead was all sweaty and his hair had plastered itself to it. Clint snuck a look over Bucky's shoulder and noticed that Steve had left the gym already. 

"What the fuck were you thinking about? You were looking off into space for like 5 minutes, ya crazy," Bucky stated with a happy grin. 

Clint laughed and then ran his fingers through the hair on Bucky's forehead. "Nothing, babe. Just thinking 'bout the time we met," he smiled happily. Bucky shot him a grin and looped his arms around his boyfriend. 

"That's a nice memory and all, but whatta ya say that we go upstairs and make some new memories," Bucky murmured. He leaned closer and put his mouth right next to Clint's ear. "In the shower," he smirked. 

Clint pulled away and laughed. 

"I'd love to"


End file.
